I grew up in Uptown, Milwaukee, which has given me the ability to live in all sorts of neighborhoods throughout the city. I grew up with 5 siblings, I’m the second youngest. I’m the only kid without a college degree, and the only musician, artist, and tradesperson. My parents are good people, my sisters and brothers too. I started playing out in bands when I was 16 and carried that passion till I was 21. I became a father and slowly left music for carpentry. I didn’t know that I would have a new chance to be creative through design at the onset.
I thank Central Library for hosting so many books on material practices. I read them and became entranced with 3-D mediums, especially woodworking. Without the books I would not have a voice as an artist. I started a club around 2012 called the Table Saw Supper Club. Now that it exists, I find it totally necessary. It acts as a community to bridge woodworkers together throughout the Milwaukee area. I do commissions for homes, offices, schools, churches, parks, restaurants, and museums. My current studio is in the Clark Square Neighborhood.
www.matthewgramlingwoodworks.com
Mediums: Wood, metals, bleach, vinegar, wax, oil, India ink, assorted chemicals for shop-made finishes
Favorite Artist Tool: Chisel
Go-to Local Inspiration: Menomonee River Valley or the Milwaukee Central Library
Mentee Compliment: Reese is a sponge that carries a camera and a notebook. There is very little he doesn’t observe, digest, and consider.
Fun Fact: The day I was born, Mount St. Helens erupted.
Serious Fact: I had always wished and hoped to be a musician.
Artist Statement
Furniture is often built catering to the habits of humans. I hope that the furniture I make conspires with humans to have awareness, and, perhaps, to form new habits.
I strive to make my objects beautiful without pretending I can perfect anything. Intimacy with an object can be obtained through its radical character. I experiment with shop-made finishes, awkward balances, and domestically gathered lumber to create furniture that speaks. I think.